The Nomadic Flâneuse

Getting ready to go back to China with M for several months, saying bye to friends and family. While talking to grandpa this evening, the little chanting voice whispering in my mind again, “on and on, going on and on, xíng xíng fù xíng xíng, 行行复行行”…

Selection of Nineteen Ancient Poems from Han Dynasty

Author: Anonymous

Translation: Burton Watson

No. 1

On and On, Going On and On

On and on, going on and on,

away from you to live apart,

ten thousand li and more between us,

each at opposite ends of the sky.

The road I travel is steep and long;

who knows when we meet again?

The Hu horse leans into the north wind;

the Yueh bird nests in southern branches:

day by day our parting grows more distant;

day by day robe and belt dangle looser.

Shifting clouds block the white sun;

the traveler does not look to return.

Thinking of you makes one old;

years and months suddenly go by.

Abandoned, I will say no more

but pluck up strength and eat my fill.

之一

行行重行行，与君生别离。

相去万余里，各在天一涯。

道路阻且长，会面安可知。

胡马依北风，越鸟巢南枝。

相去日已远，衣带日已缓。

浮云蔽白日，游子不顾返。

思君令人老，岁月忽已晚。

弃捐勿复道，努力加餐饭。

No.3

Green Green, the Cypress on the Ridge

Green green the cypress on the ridge,

stones heaped about in mountain streams:

between heaven and earth our lives rush past

like travelers with a long road to go.

Let this measure of wine be our merriment;

value it highly, without disdain.

I race the carriage, whip the lagging horses,

roam for pleasure to Wan and Lo.

Here in Lo-yang, what surging crowds,

capped and belted ones chasing each other;

long avenues fringed with narrow alleys,

the many mansions of princes and peers.

The Two Palaces face each other from afar,

paired towers over a hundred feet tall.

Let the feast last forever, delight the heart –

then what grief or gloom can weigh us down?

之三

青青陵上柏，磊磊涧中石。

人生天地间，忽如远行客。

斗酒相娱乐，聊厚不为薄。

驱车策驽马，游戏宛与洛。

洛中何郁郁，冠带自相索。

长衢罗夹巷，王侯多第宅。

两宫遥相望，双阙百余尺。

极宴娱心意，戚戚何所迫？